Peace After the Storm
by fantasyforever1989
Summary: A different take on how Allegiant could have ended. Tris and Caleb are severely injured while Tobias struggles to forgive David and Caleb as Tris fights for her life. Christina, Matthew, Cara, Amar and George deal with helping the Bureau regain order and helping everyone learn the truth of what has happened while supporting their friends, as everyone strives for a future of peace.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the Divergent series; all characters and rights belong to the talented Veronica Roth.

"_I back up, aiming over Caleb's shoulder at one of the security guards. I inhale and steady my hand. I exhale and fire."_

Caleb's POV:

I look up at the wounded security guard that Tris shot. His right hand is pressed firmly against his left side trying to staunch the blood flow from the wound, the other two guards take off down the hallway after Tris. For a moment, I'm too frozen with shock to think or process what to do next.

_I_ was supposed to be the one running to my death, not my sister.

The wounded security guard regains enough control through his pain apparently, and slowly pushes himself to his feet as he starts toward me. I don't know if they bought the story that I was Tris's hostage, they might considering Tris has made it very public her hatred for me, but I'm not going to wait around to find out. I may not be brave like the Dauntless, but I had already made up my mind when I said I would be the one to set off the memory serum. I had watched my sister get executed once; I wasn't going to watch it happen a second time.

Acting with what I know must be a surge of pure adrenaline coursing through me I jump to my feet in one quick motion and take off down the hallway in the direction of the Weapon's Lab. The sound of a gunshot makes me hunch over on instinct but I keep moving. Maybe I can get there in time before Tris detonates the death serum. My lungs protest the exertion as I push my legs to run faster, how can one hallway seem so long?

Suddenly a loud blast knocks me off my feet and I fall to the ground, my head banging against the wall hard enough for me to see stars for a minute. I feel something warm starting to trickle down the side of my face but ignore it. Tris must have detonated the explosives to open the second door to the Weapon's Lab, which means she'll be facing the death serum any second now.

I roll over and make it to my knees but I can't get up any further before the hallway begins to sway and dip in my vision. I must have hit my head harder than I thought on the wall. The soldier pursuing me however was not as injured by the blast, his footsteps echo louder in the hallway and I dizzily see him round the corner towards me. His steps however are heavy and staggered like he is struggling. The gunshot to his side is slowing him down thankfully.

"Stop right there!" the guard screams at me as I push myself up on to all fours, I crawl a few steps then trying to fight the dizziness the best I can, I push myself up onto my feet, breathing hard and leaning against the wall as I drag myself further down the hallway. I hear another gunshot whiz by my ankle and jump to the side knocking the wall again. I groan and shake my head a few times trying to shake the weird fog my mind is in.

But, I can't stop. Despite his injury, the security guard is still moving faster than I am. I listen hard to his feet pounding against the hard floor trying to calculate the distance between us and how much time I have until he catches up to me. He's too close. I can't outrun him, especially with my head still spinning like it is.

I set off down the hallway as fast as my spinning head will let me. I can make out the doors to the Weapon's Lab about 30 feet away. There are two figures slumped on the ground in the entryway, which I can only assume is my sister's handiwork. Suddenly, as I try to push myself faster, a white-hot pain explodes in my right shoulder. I scream, falling to my knees. When I take my hand away from my shoulder, it's smeared with dark red blood. Before I can fully process the full extent of just getting shot, I feel the barrel of a gun pressed against the back of my head; the guard finally caught up to me. I close my eyes and take several deep breaths, trying to stay calm.

"Hands behind your head, now!" The security guard barks, his voice is strained with pain. I feel my arms shaking as I bring them up and lace my fingers together behind my head, nearly screaming again from the pain in my shoulder. I can barely hold my arms up for a second before they fall back down, my shoulder on fire. I gasp, and try to breathe through my nose to keep myself from passing out from the pain.

I can hear the guard fumbling in his pockets behind me, probably trying to get handcuffs out. I don't dare turn my head around but it sounds like he's having trouble finding them with one hand. His right hand is still holding the gun pressed into the back of my skull.

_Think Caleb!_ I tell myself, I'm smart; I'm Erudite. I should be able to think of a way out of this. I close my eyes again, _what do I know?_ I can't fight him, I'm not very strong nor do I have much fighting skills. Then it occurs to me, he's injured.

The guard is burly and muscular, but I can use his injury against him. It's a risk considering I'm injured too. I just hope I can react faster than he can. I wait until he's looped one end of the plastic restraint on my right wrist, wincing as he forces my hands behind my back. I feel his grip loosen slightly as he adjusts the gun, still trained on me; he needs two hands to tie the restraint.

_Now!_ I scream inwardly. I grit my teeth, knowing this is going to hurt.

I try to think of everything I have learned about fighting strategies, something, _anything _that will help me get out of this, which isn't much. Erudite generally stick to their books and experiments, Jeanine Matthews was an exception. I exhale slowly forming a plan in my head. While the guard's grip is still loose and before he restrains my left wrist, I ram my left elbow into his side where Tris shot him. The guard curses and grabs his side, dropping his gun. I reach down and grab it before he can. His eyes are watering from pain and his breaths come in harsh pants, but he's already straightened up and lunges at me. I duck and jump to the side to avoid the guard's hands then hold up the gun, pointing it straight at his chest.

"I don't have time for this!" I say, wishing I wasn't shaking and so unsteady on my feet and my voice wasn't shaking so much.

The guard lunges at me again and with my arms shaking, I aim towards the ground and fire, trying to remember everything Tobias taught me this morning about shooting. Amazingly, I hit the guard where I wanted to, the top of his right foot. The guard shrieks and falls to the ground. Keeping my hand on the trigger of the gun, I turn around and jog the remaining distance to the Weapon's Lab. Tris's back is to me, but David is sitting a few feet in front of her with a gun pointed straight at her.

"_No! It's supposed to be me!_

I hold the gun up ready to fire, but David is quicker than me and his gun goes off, hitting Tris in her right side. She stumbles, but my attention is on David who is raising his hand to fire again.

"No!" I scream. I pull the gun up again, holding it firmly with both hands and fire. This time, I'm faster. He must have been so focused on Tris he didn't even see me enter the Weapon's Lab. The bullet hits David in his stomach, it wasn't exactly where I was aiming, but it does the trick. David drops his gun, clutching his stomach in pain, but I don't want to take any chances. I rush into the Lab and before he can do anything else, I hit him over the head with the butt of the gun. His eyes roll into the back of his head and he slumps against the side of the wheelchair unconscious, his breathing shallow and even.

Coughing, I stumble over to Tris who is now on the ground I hear a strange whizzing sound and look up to see a cloud of smoke emitting from the device.

She did it! The memory serum is being released into the Bureau.

"Beatrice." I gasp kneeling beside her. Her eyes are glassy and unfocused, her breathing ragged.

"No, no, no, no, no. Please, God, no." My eyes sting as I wrap my arms around her shoulders pulling her up to me. I hear her groan and something clicks in my head. She's still somewhat aware if she can still register the pain and she's semi-conscious, maybe I can still save her.

Gently, I lower her back to the ground and roll her onto her left side; blood is slowly pooling underneath her. Her whole back is coated in dark red blood. I gag, but force myself to focus. Thinking quickly, I rip the bottom half of my shirt and press the fabric hard against the wound. I feel her stiffen then moan.

"Mom, it hurts." She moans to no one. Her eyes are focused on something to the side of her as if she is seeing something that's not there. I vaguely wonder if David shot her with some other serum and she's hallucinating. But as I continue to press down hard on her wound, I realize she's in shock.

"Beatrice, look at me! Please!" I beg. I feel hot tears on my cheeks as she slowly turns her head back to me, confused. She's fully aware of where she is, why else would she ask for mom?

"Caleb? No, no this is wrong, they weren't supposed to get you too." She sounds panicked now, worried.

"Beatrice, they didn't get me, I'm okay. And you, just…. stay awake…for me please, okay? Just, stay awake." I choke through the tears.

She smiles at me and reaches for my face but her arm drops midway.

"Tell Tobias that I…"

"No! Shut up…please! Just stay awake, just a little longer okay?" I repeat and let my body sag against her, putting all my weight and energy into applying pressure to her wound. The adrenaline rush I had from earlier is fading and I feel my vision starting to get fuzzy again.

"Look at me, come on Beatrice!" I beg as her eyes flutter close. I take one hand away from her wound and gently slap her face. It takes her a minute but she slowly opens them again, this time not as wide. I press two fingers against her neck, feeling her pulse. It's weak.

"Please Tris, don't do this." I say quietly my forehead pressed against hers. She doesn't respond to me, I look at her face and see her eyes are still open but she has that glassy look again.

I bring my hand back on top of the ripped shirt, applying as much pressure as I can. My body feels weak and the room is slipping in and out of focus, whiteness starts to creep in on the edges of my vision. I feel my pulse pounding in my ears and shake my head a few times, trying to clear my muddled brain to no avail. The shaking makes the dizziness worse and I feel like I might be sick for a minute.

I don't know how much time has passed but I soon become vaguely aware of new sounds around me. Hurried footsteps, someone screams, more running. Suddenly, there are hands pulling me off of my sister.

"No…please, she needs…" My voice is strained and I can't remember what I was going to say next. Everything is hazy and I feel myself slide to the ground.

"I got her!" The voice says. I can't recognize whose it is though it sounds familiar.

"She's alive, but barely."

"Careful! Don't jostle her so much, she may have a spinal injury."

There is more movement, more voices, more shouting, something squeaks that sounds like wheels.

Go get another stretcher!" Another voice orders closer to me, though I can't figure out who they're talking about. It isn't until I feel pressure suddenly on the inside of my wrist as someone tries to take my pulse that I realize the person is referring to me. I pull my wrist away from them.

"Tris needs…" I try to say to whoever is trying to take my pulse, but I'm too weak to resist anymore as I feel the hands again.

"They're helping her but you need medical attention too. Your head is covered in blood and so is your arm." The voice is male but that's about all I can recognize. His voice echoes strangely, making it hard for me to fully understand what he's saying.

"I…"

"Relax Caleb, they're taking Tris to the hospital wing now. Stay still, okay."

"I need…" I mumble, closing my eyes for a second, trying to ignore everything spinning.

"Hey, calm down okay? You can't help Tris like this anyways." Whoever is trying to help me gently puts a hand on each of my arms, pinning me in place to keep me from moving.

"No…you don't understand… I have…I need…" I try to explain again but my voice trails off. I can't seem to form my thoughts into proper sentences anymore.

The last thing I'm aware of is being lifted onto something cold and hard. Someone I think is talking to me but I can't hear them anymore, sound is muffled and muted around me. I can't see anything past the white haze in my vision and then I surrender to the blackness tugging me into unconsciousness.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Has he woken up at all?"

"No, not yet. The doctor said it all depends on how much trauma effected his brain."

"Brain damage?"

"They won't know until he wakes up, though they said it doesn't appear that there's any internal swelling or bleeding."

"How's Tris?"

"Alive for now. Same thing, they won't know more until she wakes up."

I hear the voices but only catch bits and phrases of the conversation as my senses slowly start returning to me, dull at first but slowly getting sharper. I hear footsteps again, lots of running back and forth. I smell a strong antiseptic odor that stings my nose and something cold brushes against my hand.

"I think he's waking up." Someone says near my head. I scrunch my eyes, the voice makes my head hurt.

"Caleb, can you hear me?" Again, the voice sounds familiar and I try to open my eyes. It takes me a minute and when I do, everything is too bright. I groan and turn my head into the pillow, shutting my eyes again.

"Take it easy, you're okay." The voice says again and this time I recognize who it is.

"Matthew." I croak, my voice hoarse.

"Hey." He says, I slowly turn back toward him and open my eyes again, this time more slowly. At first everything is blurry and bright but after a minute, I see distinct outlines and Matthew's face swims into focus, Cara is standing next to him. That's when I realize I'm in the hospital wing.

"Hi." I say a little unsure. Something's wrong, but I can't quite figure out what it is.

"How are you feeling?"

"Tired…what happened?" I ask, confused. I don't remember coming to the hospital wing. I reach an arm up to scratch my head and feel a thick bandage. Matthew grabs my arm and gently puts it back at my side. Cara bites the inside of her cheek, staring at me concerned.

"You don't want to touch that." Matthew warns, then his expression changes, more serious.

"You don't remember what happened?" He asks slowly, watching me carefully and exchanges a quick, terrified glance at Cara. I shake my head.

"I'm not sure…" I groan again and press my palms into my eyes. I remember something big happening, trying to stop… something… and Tris. Something was wrong with Tris.

"Why can't I remember what happened?" I ask shakily.

"You have a serious head injury. Memory loss is common with severe concussions. Your doctor didn't find any signs of permanent brain damage, so you should make a full recovery though. They still need to do some more tests to make sure now that you're awake." Matthew speaks as if he's reciting a medical journal.

_Memory loss…_

I gasp as that one phrase triggers something in my brain. I'm silent for a few, long minutes as I slowly put all the jumbled pieces in my fragmented memory together.

The memory serum…the Weapon's Lab…the death serum…Tris giving herself up, instead of me…David shooting Tris…

"Beatrice! Where is she?" I demand, my voice louder than I meant it to be. I sit up fast, instantly regretting the movement and nearly pass out again as my shoulder explodes in pain, my head feels heavy. Cara grabs my good shoulder and gently helps me lay back down.

"Tris is alive. Now stay still will you, you're going to rip your stitches out." Matthew answers me. His eyes are dark and he looks like he's debating on how much to tell me.

"How bad is she?" I ask, staring straight at him. Matthew frowns again and fingers the cord around his neck.

"She lost a lot of blood. They had to do emergency surgery, something about internal bleeding. They wouldn't tell me too much, only that they'll know more once she wakes up." Matthew explains. I turn away from him again, this time to hide the tears stinging my eyes.

"It was supposed to be me." I say out loud without meaning to, so quietly that I'm not sure Cara or Matthew heard me. Cara looks at me sympathetically as a few stray tears fall down my face.

"Maybe that was the plan, but despite what she may have said, I don't think Tris could ever let you walk to your death. Despite all the hatred and fighting between the two of you recently, she still loves you. Tris is too selfless to watch someone she loves knowingly kill themselves. I don't think it is something she would wish on anyone." Cara says and gently takes my left hand in hers.

"Do they think she's going to die?" I ask, terrified of hearing the answer, but needing to know the truth.

"I don't know. But, I do know your sister is one of the strongest people I've ever met. She's not leaving here without a fight." Matthew says. I don't know if he is just saying that to make me feel better, but I take a few shaky breaths to calm myself down anyways. Tris can't die. I don't think I could live with myself if she did.

"How long have I been here?" I ask, picking at the thin sheets.

"Almost 24 hours." Cara replies.

The answer startles me; I've been lying here unconscious for almost a full day? What else has happened?

I guess people like me who were not fatally injured are not in private rooms, but in small cubicles separated by curtains. I don't see Tris anywhere and swallow a lump in my throat. I look around the hospital at all the nurses and doctors bustling around and that's when I notice the people sitting on the beds, their expressions confused, the nurses lean over them, talking to them quietly like comforting a scared child.

"It worked right? The memory serum worked?" I ask fearfully. This can't have been for nothing, it can't have. Matthew nods and runs a hand over his face. I breathe a sigh of relief.

"It's been nothing but chaos, but it's starting to calm down slightly. Everyone affected by the serum is still all out of sorts, but they're starting to understand…somewhat…and they are slowly being told who they are and what happened." I nod, not sure how to react.

"I want to see my sister." I say after a few minutes. Cara shakes her head.

"You can't. Not yet at least. The doctors are still working on her and besides you can barely move." She says.

"She's still in surgery? After this long?" I exclaim. That can't be right.

"No, she's in post-op recovery from what I can tell. She's in a separate room in the back, but I keep seeing the doctors running in and out of her room." Matthew explains. I sigh and lean back into the pillow.

"Please…let me see her, just for a minute at least." I practically beg. I have to see for myself that she's alive. Matthew stays firm though and shakes his head.

"Not right now, rest first. I promise I'll take you to see her soon when you're more clear-headed. Not now when you've just woken up from a serious head injury and can barely remember what happened, not to mention the gunshot wound in your shoulder."

Matthew stares me and crosses his arms over his chest as if to further prove his point. I glare at him and once again try to push myself up, this time not as fast. Grimacing, I manage to sit up and swing one leg onto the floor.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Cara exclaims, grabbing my good arm to try and stop me.

I swat her arm away and swing my other leg onto the floor, clenching my teeth to ignore the throbbing pain in my shoulder. I manage one full step before my knees buckle unable to hold my weight. Matthew catches me before I fall and Cara helps him drag me back to the bed.

"See? You're not going anywhere yet." Matthew chastises. I sigh frustrated.

"I told you, you have a bad head injury. Your balance is going to be off and you're going to be weak, meaning you need to _stay put_." He says sternly.

"Can you at least try and get an update on her condition?" I ask rolling over on my side in an attempt to get more comfortable with little success. Something seemed to always hurt no matter which way I lied on the bed.

"I can do that." Matthew nods and gets up, heading toward the back of the hallway. Cara sits down in a plastic chair near my bed. I look up at her and that's when I notice a large bruise on the side of her head.

"Are you okay?" I ask pointing to her head.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just knocked myself out." Cara says with a grim smile.

"You knocked yourself out?" I ask bewildered, she nods.

"I got caught trying to disable the lights in the compound. I knew they would use truth serum to find out who else I was working with and I wasn't going to let that happen, so I ran into the wall and knocked myself out before they could do anything. When I came to, the memory serum had already started going into effect and the guards had left the room. I didn't know where everyone else had gone but I started going to the Weapon's Lab, that's when I ran into Matthew."

"The guards had caught him too." I say suddenly remembering how he had shot his gun into the air as a diversion so Tris and I could get to the Weapon's Lab.

"He wasn't held for very long. He also ran once the memory serum took effect on the guards holding him. We stopped at the hospital wing on the way and ended up getting two nurses to come with us. Surprisingly, they followed as without question. They may have not known their names at the time, but they understood that people were hurt, I guess that was good enough at the time to get them to come with us. We also grabbed a stretcher to…well, to put your body on." She turns away from me, but I nod understanding. The memory serum had been released and they assumed I was dead.

_I should be_ I think solemnly.

"There was so much blood in the Weapon's Lab. When we first ran in there, it looked like both you and Tris were dead." Her voice shakes slightly. I don't know what to say to that.

"What happened exactly?" She asks quietly a second later. I sigh, not really wanting to relive the details.

"You haven't figured it out? Tris took my place! She held me at gunpoint and demanded I give her the explosives. I did, but…I just couldn't let her do it alone. I had made my decision and then she goes and pulls _that_?" I realize my voice sounds low and harsh. I rub my forehead as the back of my skull throbs painfully. I can't seem to think too hard on anything without my head hurting.

"It's understandable why you'd be mad at her, but you're not thinking of it from her perspective." Cara says slowly.

I didn't realize I was even angry with my sister until now, but Cara's right, _I am_ mad. She might still die and it's all because she had to be so…_selfless!_ Growing up, everyone always thought I was the perfect Abnegation son: always selfless, always thinking of others and never of myself. But now, our roles are reversed. Tris is more selfless than she claims to be. I stare at Cara, my mouth dry. She smiles at me and takes my hand in hers again.

"Like I said, Tris wasn't about to stand back and watch the only surviving family member she has commit suicide. Just like you couldn't stand back and let her walk into the Weapon's Lab alone. Whether you guys want to admit it or not, you're all each other has in terms of blood for family and you'll both protect that in your own way." Cara speaks so clearly, her voice never wavering.

The sudden anger disappears from my chest. I can't deny that every word Cara said is true. I don't have anyone else. I thought I had lost my sister the minute she discovered I had betrayed her in Erudite headquarters, that any relationship we might have been able to have was ruined by my actions. But she allowed herself to forgive me. I still don't know if she meant what she said when were playing "Candor" or if she was just saying those things because she thought it would be the last time she would ever talk to me just minutes before everything turned to chaos. Yet, I can't deny that it at least gives me hope that maybe one day we can have some form of a good relationship again…maybe. My eyes slide close for a second, drowsiness taking over my body.

"Get some sleep." Cara says softly and I hear the chair slide back as she gets up. I don't want to go back to sleep after already spending so much time unconscious but I feel sleep pulling me under and I don't have the energy to fight it.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Now look to the left. Good."

I sigh as the doctor pockets the small flashlight he had just been using to shine into each of my eyes.

"I just need to ask you a few basic questions to determine if there is any permanent brain damage." The doctor says observing me; I nod feebly.

"What's your last name?"

"Prior."

"How old are you?"

"Almost 17."

"Do you know where you are right now?"

"The Bureau for Generic Welfare, a few hours outside of Chicago."

"What is 5 times 12?

I have to think for a minute on the math question. "60." I say a second later, slightly annoyed. It was a simple math problem; it shouldn't have taken me that long to answer it.

"When I first came over here I asked you to remember three objects, what were they?" The doctor asks scribbling something on the clipboard in front of him. I scrunch my forehead trying hard to remember.

"A chair, a book, and…" I rub my forehead trying to remember, but I can't.

"Take your time." The doctor says patiently, but I shake my head, the answer is lost to me.

"I don't know." I say quietly, feeling defeated. I wince and press my palms into my forehead again, trying to massage the throbbing pain away. I don't like my mind not working properly and not being able to focus or think normally.

"That's okay. The good news is you don't show any signs of any long-term memory loss or damage. However, you are experiencing short term memory loss. It's nothing to worry about; it should disappear within a few days. I'm guessing you're probably still experiencing some dizziness?" The doctor speaks calmly, still scribbling on his clipboard. I nod.

"All signs of your brain trying to heal itself. You're going to have to take it easy for a while. The best thing you can do for a concussion this severe is rest and don't exert yourself. The more physical activity you do, the longer it's going to take you to get better. Plus, you could potentially injure yourself more since your balance is going to be off." The doctor instructs finally placing the clipboard back at the end of my bed.

"Okay." I manage in response to the doctor. As I look at him, I wonder what he would have been like before. Seeing as he was in the Bureau at the time the memory serum was released, he must have been affected by it. I'm surprised he's able to work so soon after forgetting everything he was. Though, Matthew did say the serum doesn't affect your skills or abilities.

"Were you affected by the memory serum?" I blurt out before I can stop myself, my curiosity getting the better of me. The doctor stares at me for a moment then nods slowly.

"I was." He says a little unsure of himself and awkwardly smoothes his lab coat; he's nervous.

"I'm sorry…it's just I was curious how you're able to work so soon after…everything." I mumble, hoping my words make sense."

"I see. Well, they showed us that video about what the government did. I can't fully wrap my head around everything, but working helps. I can barely tell you my name, but I can tell you the name of every bone in the human body, so I'm choosing to focus on that for now. Being a doctor was something I was always good at…well, I like to think so at least. Your friend said that according to the Bureau's records, I've been working here for fifteen years, so I guess that means I must have had some credibility around here."

"I'm sure you did." I say, starting to regret asking him anything. The doctor clears his throat awkwardly and starts to walk away.

"Wait! Can you tell me how my sister is doing?" I call after him. After I had woken up for the second time that day I had waited for Matthew to come back and give me an update on how Tris was doing but I haven't seen him yet. Most likely he got distracted with something else. The doctor studies me for a long moment before answering.

"She's stable for now. The bullet ruptured her liver pretty extensively, but we were fortunately able to repair the damage. She's not out of the woods yet though. There is still the chance of infection setting in and several post-op complications arising, but we are monitoring her and doing our best to ensure that doesn't happen. She also lost a lot of blood. We had to give her two blood transfusions just to keep her blood pressure up during surgery."

"What are her chances of a full recovery?" I ask, my voice cracking slightly.

"It's hard to say at this point. Once the anesthesia wears off and she wakes up, we'll know a little more if there was any permanent damage done. There's no indication of a spinal injury, which is what we were afraid of initially but as of right now, her pulse is steady and her blood pressure is finally stable, which considering everything is a very good sign." I swallow a lump in my throat and feel like I've just been punched in the stomach.

"I'm sorry if I sound too forward, but I want to be honest with you and I don't want to give you false hope." The doctor explains. I nod.

"Yeah, I understand. Thank you." I say, sounding almost monotone. The doctor nods again and walks away. I lean back into the pillow and stare up at the ceiling.

_Please, if there is a God up there, save my sister. Please don't let Tris die. _

_**Hi Everyone,**_

_**So, this is my first time writing a Divergent fic. After finishing Allegiant I couldn't help but think of different endings since I was really upset that Tris got killed off : (. I will try to update as much as I can. Please forgive any spelling/grammar mistakes, I have a bad habit of writing at 2:00 in the morning, I try to catch them all, but I'm sure I might have missed a few**_

_**Please let me know what you think of this story so far. Good or bad I always appreciate reviews as they give me an idea of what people like or don't like about my writing and they help me motivate to update quicker. **_

_**I have a basic idea of where I want this to go, so I should be updating soon. **_

_**- Fantasyforever1989**_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own the Divergent series or the characters. All rights go to the talented, Veronica Roth.

A/N: Quick shout out to anyone who reviewed chapter one. Thank you SO much, you guys are amazing!

_We walk through the abandoned security checkpoint without stopping. On the other side, I see Cara. The side of her face is badly bruised, and there's a bandage on her head, but that's not what concerns me. What concerns me is the troubled look on her face._  
- Veronica Roth, Allegiant.

Tobias's POV:

"What is it?" I ask, my voice is steady, even though I feel that my hands are shaking. Cara shakes her head and doesn't look up at me right away.

"Where's Tris?" I question further, trying to ignore the sick filling in my stomach as I watch Cara take a staggering breath before answering me.

"She's in the hospital. Things didn't go like we planned. David…he figured out that we were planning something and put the whole compound on lockdown. Tris and Caleb made it to the Weapon's Lab, but…they both got hurt pretty bad."

I try and force air into my lungs as I suddenly feel like I've had the wind knocked out of me; the air feels sticky and hot despite the cold temperature outside. I have come close to losing Tris so many times now that I don't know if I can handle going through this again.

"What?" Is all I can manage to gasp out loud, my mind suddenly numb.

"But, she's going to be okay right? I mean they were able to fix her up in the hospital right?" Christina's voice sounds desperate as she stares at Cara who just shakes her head again.

"I don't know. David…he shot her. All I know is she was rushed into emergency surgery to fix some internal bleeding. The doctors aren't telling us much, apparently they'll only give details to family and Caleb is… well, he's still unconscious too. He has a bad concussion and was shot in the shoulder." Cara tries to explain as gently as she can, her voice wavering slightly.

"That's bull shit! We're practically her family, better than that coward excuse of a brother she has!" Christina shrieks enraged.

I feel angry too, but my brain stopped listening to Cara after the word surgery…Tris is in surgery and they don't know if she'll recover…

I shove my hands into my pockets in an attempt to hide their constant shaking as I start to panic. I don't want to imagine a world without Tris in it, _I can't. _

"I know, they wouldn't tell us anything at all at first. They only told us that much because Matthew and I wouldn't stop asking them and I think they got tired of us." Cara stammers.

Amar clears his throat behind me. He's pale and confused as he tries to make sense of what we're talking about. I forgot that he didn't know about our plan to release the memory serum into the compound. Cara must notice this too as she suddenly shifts uncomfortably and turns her attention to him.

"I'll explain, but it's probably easier to show you than tell you at this point." Cara says and beckons us to follow her. I'm about to protest because the last thing I want to do right now is sit down and explain the details of our plan to Amar and how I lied to him. All I can think about is Tris.

_I need to see her._

But then I realize we're walking in the direction of the hospital wing. Cara walks through the hospital doors and I wrinkle my nose as the strong stench of chemicals hits my nostrils. I've never liked hospitals. They're cold and smell and usually mean something bad is about to happen. Cara walks a few feet into the main ward where people are being put into different groups. Some are sitting on the beds others are standing, but all of them look stunned and bewildered as they stumble around in daze. I know that look. It's the same one Peter wore seconds after he drank the memory serum.

"My God…" Amar exclaims covering his mouth with his right hand. It doesn't take him long to figure it out.

"You guys planned this?" He asks breathless.

"Well, nothing really went how we planned it, but yes. People needed to know that the Bureau has been lying to them all this time. It was time they knew the truth and the only way to save our city from being destroyed." Cara says, her voice a little more steady than it was before. Amar frowns.

"What lies? What are you talking about?" He demands. I hear Cara talking again, probably explaining to Amar how there is evidence of war before the Purity War, but I stop paying attention again. Pieces of their conversation filter through my brain but most of it I barely catch. Sound is strangely muted, like my mind has turned the volume on low for everything. Nothing else seems important enough to focus my attention on except finding out where Tris is.

Until I see _him_.

As I look around the crowded ward, suddenly my body freezes as I catch sight of Matthew sitting next to someone lying limp on one of the beds to my left. My breath hitches in my throat and anger swells in my chest, my eyes narrow; Caleb.

This is _his _fault! If he hadn't been such a coward, Tris would be fine!

I move fast and am by his side in three quick strides before anyone can stop me. Matthew stands up quickly, holding up his hands to block my path.

"Whoa! What are you going to do, punch him? He's already unconscious Tobias." Matthew says sternly, I glare at him.

"This is his fault!" I scream, causing Matthew to jump backwards slightly, but he recovers quickly and slowly shakes his head.

"It's not his fault Tobias. From what we can tell, Caleb tried to stop David. David was shot too and Tris didn't have her gun with her when we found her in the Weapon's Lab, it was in the entryway so Caleb must have shot him. He tried to save her."

"Tris shouldn't have been anywhere near the Weapon's Lab to begin with! Caleb was, not her!" I feel my heartbeat racing as anger courses though me like venom.

I can't help it; it feels good. Suddenly, it's easier to focus all my energy on a single emotion, like anger, instead of focusing on the fact that Tris is fighting for her life at this very moment and there's nothing I can do to help her.

"Maybe so, but don't forget that Caleb wasn't the one who shot Tris." Matthew challenges, still blocking the last few steps to Caleb's bed.

"What the hell happened anyways? _Why _did she go to the Weapon's Lab with him?" I stare at Matthew, using the voice I used to use as a Dauntless instructor demanding answers of my trainees.

"I'm not sure exactly, Caleb hasn't woken up yet, so the details are a bit unclear but from what we can tell, Tris tried to take his place and he tried to stop her." Matthew stares at me, watching me closely.

It's then the fight goes out of me. My hands drop to my sides and I feel my pulse pounding in my head as the adrenaline, which had been fueling my anger, begins to fade away, leaving me feeling drained.

_He's her brother. She loves him. She couldn't watch him die. _

I sigh and close my eyes, trying to take several deep breaths. Now that I take the time to think about it, I should have expected something like this. Tris is too kind and selfless to watch her brother die, despite her hatred for him. She's already lost her parents and Caleb is the only connection she has left to them. She wouldn't let go of them so easily. All of a sudden, my body stiffens and I open my eyes as I feel a hand on my shoulder. I look up and see Christina standing next to me. She stares at Caleb's still form for a minute and I can't read her expression.

"Come on. Cara said Tris should be in the post-op ward in the back." Her voice is softer than I expected it to be. I let her lead me away from Caleb towards the back of the hospital as she keeps a firm grip on my elbow.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"No, she can't have any visitors yet. Not until she's more stable." The doctor states simply.

"You told me that five hours ago! Why won't you actually tell me what's going on?" I growl at the doctor annoyed.

"I already told you, Ms. Prior is still in critical condition. Until her condition stabilizes she can't have visitors." The doctor speaks firmly and with authority, daring me to contradict him.

"Dick." I hear Christina mutter under her breath as the doctor walks away, leaving Christina and me standing in the narrow hallway outside of the post op-ward.

About twenty minutes after we had gotten back to the compound all anyone would tell me was, "she's in surgery, you'll have to wait." So, I sat outside the post-op ward for two hours, never moving once despite how sore my back got or how the muscles in my shoulders began to throb painfully from being in the same position for too long until two doctors walked out of the operating room. The minute I saw them I jumped to my feet ignoring the nervous knot in my stomach and asked about Tris's condition, receiving nothing but roundabout answers, and after five hours of the same roundabout answers, I had lost my temper more than once. It probably wasn't smart snapping at the people who literally held Tris's life in their hands, but I had already been running on a short fuse these past few days and knew I was reaching my breaking point quickly.

I manage to offer Christina a small nod in agreement before resuming my spot on the floor outside the post-op ward.

"You could get a chair, you know. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you brought one over here." Christina says plopping down next to me. I shrug.

"I didn't want to leave until they let me in to see her." I say staring at the wall across from us. I turn toward her in time to see her roll her eyes.

"I'll be right back." Christina says before disappearing down the hallway only to reappear a minute later with two chairs in tow.

"You can pretend that your butt is not sore from sitting on this hard ass floor, but I'm not." She states matter-of-factly as she sets up both chairs before sliding into one. I relent and stand up, reaching behind me to massage the kink in my neck that has been there for the past hour.

"I suppose telling you that you should eat something and get some rest is probably useless, right?"

"Probably." I agree, rolling my shoulders a few times and try to suppress a grimace as I hear something pop and crack, my muscles protesting the movement after being still for so long.

Christina sighs but doesn't say anything else as we settle into a surprisingly comfortable silence. After a while she gets up again and is gone long enough that I think she has possibly gone to lie down for a nap, though when she comes back, she's in a fresh change of clothes. She settles back into the chair she had previously occupied and hands me a wrapped turkey sandwich and a bottle of water.

"We've been here for going on eight hours now. Don't lie to me and tell me you're not hungry." She says crossing her arms in front of her. I unwrap the sandwich and take a bite to appease her, but I set it down after another few forced mouthfuls, my stomach too uneasy to eat anything else without feeling nauseous.

Another two hours pass and I see a different doctor than the one I chewed out earlier heading in our direction, I start to stand up but this time the doctor holds his hands up in surrender when I face him.

"She's stable for now." The doctor tells me before I even get my mouth open to protest.

"I want to see her." I demand for what seems like the millionth time. The doctor stares at me for a few long moments before shaking his head.

"I know you do, but while she's still in critical condition, you can't. It's a precaution we take for our critical patients to not allow visitors until they're more stable." The doctor's tone is calm but professional and unlike the previous doctor, I don't feel like he's talking down to me.

"You just said she _was _stable." I snap, unable to keep the bitter edge out of my voice.

"She is, but barely. The first 24 hours after an injury of her extent is crucial. The bullet ruptured her liver and we were luckily able to repair the damage but she lost a great deal of blood and as a result we are having a lot of trouble keeping her blood pressure up. We gave her a second blood transfusion and so far, her pressure has stayed up but that could change at any moment. I did manage to get her moved to a private room with a window, so you can at least see her that way." The doctor says as a peace offering, but I can't seem to force my limbs to work properly, my body is frozen as I try to process all the information at once.

She can fight this. I know she can.

"Come on, I'll take you to her room." The doctor says motioning down the hallway for us to follow him.

He leads us down a separate corridor off to the right and stops at a room about a third of a way down the hallway. I stare through the window and instantly feel my heart skip a beat.

If it weren't for the array of tubes and monitors hooked up to her body, she would look like she was asleep, except that Tris doesn't sleep on her back normally and she's never that motionless, even in her sleep she is constantly shifting around. All the machines and wiring in the cramped room make her look even smaller. I press a hand against the glass and put most of my weight on it as I sag against the wall, my forehead pressed on top of my hand.

Christina puts her arm around my shoulder but doesn't say anything and I can't tell if she is trying to comfort herself or me or both of us. She lets her arm drop a minute later though and we stand there silently, side-by-side.

I'm not sure whether we stood there for twenty minutes or for another five hours. The longer I look at Tris, the more I hope that I will start being able to make sense of this whole messed up situation. Part of me is in denial, I try to convince myself that if I stare at her long enough, she will sit up and smile at me and kiss me and maybe yell at me for taking so long to get back and worrying her, but she doesn't move even a finger the whole time.

"How is she?" A deep voice behind me asks. I turn around fast, nearly smacking Amar in the face, not having heard him come up the hallway.

"You really are losing your touch Four. During initiation, you would have heard me coming two miles away." He cracks a small grin, but it doesn't reach his eyes like it normally does.

"I'm a little preoccupied at the moment." I retort, turning back toward Tris.

"I know." Amar says quietly.

"There hasn't been any change. The doctor said the surgery went okay, but they're having trouble keeping her blood pressure up. She hasn't woken up yet." I say, answering his initial question a minute later.

Amar nods slowly in return and shifts his feet, like he's nervous and wants to say something else. I turn to face him, and see that his jaw is set tight and he has dark circles under his eyes. I don't think I've ever seen him look so unsettled in my life.

"Are you okay?" I ask. Amar closes his eyes and runs a shaky hand through his hair.

"Not really." I hear him murmur. I wait for him to continue, knowing better than to question him further.

"How could they lie to us for so long? I feel like such a fool, following them blindly, I should have known better. I'm good at reading people and seeing through their lies, but I never…I never dreamed the Bureau was so corrupt that they would hide so many secrets. I trusted them, I believed in them." Amar sounds disconnected and I'm not unsympathetic. For the second time in his life, the world he thought he knew has been shattered in an instant and both times, the Bureau has been responsible. First, it was the Factions, now it is the lies about genetically pure people being capable of creating war.

"It's not your fault and you're not a fool. People lie. They tell themselves that they're really doing good, that they're bettering humanity, but it's always a cover." I say. I know they are not the most comforting words, but they're true and it's all I can manage at the moment. It feels strange trying to comfort my old mentor, like our roles are reversed.

"I don't know who to trust anymore or if I can even trust anyone ever again." His voice is strained and gets caught in his throat.

"I know the feeling." I agree. He looks up at me and then looks at Tris again.

"I bet you do."

"I guess we just have to…adapt." I say with a small smirk. Amar manages a weak laugh at my use of his favorite command during initiation.

"I guess so." He says, offering me a small grin and looking a bit more like himself before coughing and clearing his throat.

"I also wanted to thank you. George told me you were the one that told him to inoculate himself against the memory serum." Amar stammers, tripping over his words.

"No thanks are necessary." I say and I mean it. It wouldn't have been right to let George lose his memories.

I glimpse at the window on the far side of Tris's room and notice that the sky is slowly turning from black to navy. I glance down at my watch and see that it's 4:30 in the morning. The sun had barely set when we had left for the city. It seems like we've been back for days instead of hours.

Amar sits down in the chair that Christina had gotten for me earlier rubbing his temples like he has a headache. I'd be surprised if he didn't have one. Christina has somehow curled herself up in her chair and is snoring lightly, her head resting against her left arm, which is folded on top of the armrest like a pillow, and her right arm dangles over the armrest. I can't see how in the world she managed to fall asleep in that position, but if she's comfortable like that, I'm not going to protest.

"What are you doing here?" I ask Amar though I'm looking through the small window into Tris's room again. He looks up at me confused.

"I mean, why are you here at Tris's room at 4:30 in the morning?" I clarify.

"Too much on my mind, I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd check on you. I figured you'd be awake, knowing how you are." Amar shrugs nonchalantly.

"I'm fine." I say a little too quickly. Amar raises his eyebrows at me, disbelieving.

"You're far from fine." He says seriously. He stands back up and moves so his standing beside me.

"As long as Tris pulls through this, I will be."

I swallow heavily and wipe a hand across my forehead, willing the heavy grogginess that is trying to take over my body to disappear. Despite how tired I know my body is, I ignore it, determined. I won't go to sleep until I get to hold Tris in my arms and feel for myself that she's going to be okay.

"How did things go with your parents?" Amar asks.

"How did you know about that?" I stare at him mystified. The only other person that knew about my ulterior motives for going to the city that are here are Peter and he can barely remember his own name and…

"Christina." Amar says. I groan. I hadn't forgotten about the meeting with my parents and Johanna, I just had pushed it to the back of my mind, not wanting to think about it just yet.

"It went good I suppose. Johanna agreed to Evelyn's treaty. No uprising and Evelyn has to leave the city forever, assuming everyone listens and agrees when the treaty is announced to the rest of the city." Amar hesitates, watching me closely before continuing.

"What about Marcus?"

I clench my teeth and take a staggering breath before answering.

"I don't know and I don't care. He won't be eligible to lead the city; Johanna basically forced him to agree to that term. But, after that, I don't know." I know my voice sounds hostile and maybe it always will when I talk about Marcus. My eyes widen as another thought occurs to me.

"I have to pick my mother up at the city limits this afternoon." I say more to myself than to Amar, who seems to pick up on my predicament. I don't want to leave Tris.

"Don't worry about that. I'll pick her up for you." Amar says, waving his hand like it's not a big deal. I look up at him grateful.

"Thank you."

"It's the least I can do." I hear him yawn and then stretch his arms above his head.

"I'll see you later." Amar says. He clamps a hand down on my shoulder briefly before walking away with a small wave at me behind his back.

I end up pacing back and forth after a while to give my legs something to do. At one point I glance at the window again and see that early morning sunlight is now streaming into Tris's room, casting a soft, yellow glow across the floor.

It's strange how the world keeps going when your own feels like it might crash down on you at any moment. It doesn't matter what catastrophe we may be facing, the sun will still rise the next morning to bring a new day.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I'm pacing the hallway for what feels like the thousandth time when I see the doctor from last night slowly walking our way. By now, the sun has fully risen and Tris's room is lit up as the light bounces off the walls. I stop my constant pacing and stare at him, waiting.

"I thought you would want to know that you can go in and see her now. She's not conscious yet, but her blood pressure didn't drop once during the night. She still has a ways to go, but it's a good sign." The doctor says with a small smile on his face.

I don't need to be told twice, already reaching for the door handle to her room. Christina is awake by now and is right behind me.

"Thanks." I tell him. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding, relief flooding me. Before the doctor can say anything else I rush into the room and am by Tris's side in a matter of seconds.

I take her slack hand in mine, feeling it's warmth and squeeze it. I wish she would squeeze mine back in return as I brush a few stray hairs out of her eyes with my other hand and cup her cheek. As I stare at her face I feel my eyes sting and quickly shake my head.

_No tears, no crying._ I scold myself. Christina is on the opposite side of the bed, her hands balled into tight fists on either side of her body.

"I know it may not look like it, but she is showing signs of improvement." The doctor says quietly behind me. I didn't realize he had followed us into the room.

"Also, I don't know if you want to know, but I checked on her brother, Caleb I think his name is…" He pauses for a minute and I feel my body go rigid at the sound of his name, my throat suddenly dry.

"What about him?" I scowl, not taking my attention away from Tris's face.

"I just thought that… you might want to know that he is stable too. He has a severe concussion, but we won't know until he regains consciousness if any of the damage is permanent. And his shoulder should…"

"Stop!" I shout, cutting the doctor off. I can't hear about Caleb, not right now. I can't just ignore that Tris is lying unresponsive in this bed because of him.

"I'm sorry." The doctor says quickly, looking slightly taken aback. He hesitates for a moment, then backs up and leaves the room.

_Smart move. _I think. I don't know if I would have been able to restrain from punching him for much longer if he had kept talking about Caleb in front of me. Christina puckers her lips like she just ate something sour and can't quite get the bad taste out of her mouth. She doesn't say anything for a while, instead just sinks into the chair across from me on the other side of Tris's bed.

"She probably would care about how Caleb is doing right now, wouldn't she?" Christina asks, catching me off guard. I grit my teeth and rub my forehead, feeling the beginnings of a headache.

Tris _would _care about Caleb's condition, she would claim not to and try to act like she didn't care, but she would.

"Yeah." I answer simply, my voice colder than I meant it to be.

I can't let go of my anger at Caleb, despite that I had told Tris yesterday morning that I would work on forgiving him since she had decided to forgive him for his betrayal, but I can't now. How many times will he put his sister's life at a stake before it finally kills her? How many times will he have to betray her before she cuts him out her life completely? Caleb doesn't deserve forgiveness.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

The rest of the morning and afternoon pass in a blur. People come in and out of the room throughout the day, checking on various monitors and scribbling results down on a chart attached to the end of Tris's bed. Sometimes they come in with needles filled with liquid and I wince as I watch them inject the various liquids into the IV line attached to her arm. If Tris were awake, she would demand that they let her inject herself and I don't blame her for it. I know how she feels about other people injecting her with unknown substances since the attack simulation took place, and even though I know that it is medication that is saving her life and not the death serum, it still makes me nervous to watch.

"Tobias, can I come in?" I hear a soft, female voice say. I sit up straight and close my eyes for a brief second as I recognize the voice as my mother's.

I nod, not turning to face my mother. A few moments later I feel her brush a hand against my shoulder, but I pull away from her touch.

"How is she?" She asks quietly.

"No change."

She nods slowly and falters for a moment, bouncing on the balls of her feet for a second before slowly walking around the other side of the bed and perches on the edge of the other chair that Christina had sat in previously. Christina had left a little while ago, saying she wanted to see Uriah and see how Zeke and Hana were doing. Zeke had been avoiding me since we got back to the Bureau and I him. I was taking Cara's advice and giving him his space to grieve. Either one day he would choose to forgive the part I took in his brother's death or he wouldn't and I was prepared to accept either outcome as punishment for my actions.

"You look horrible." My mother observes, watching me closely.

"Thanks." I retort, ignoring her.

"You know, forcing yourself to stay awake all night and starving yourself isn't going to help Tris any and you know she'll be mad when she wakes up and sees you looking like this." My mother waves her hand, gesturing to my disheveled looking state.

I look up at her, stunned. I notice that she had specifically said, "when" she wakes up instead of "if" she wakes up. Even after all these years, I'm amazed that my mother can manage to get through to me the way she does, maybe it's something we never lost and just something I chose to ignore. I sigh, knowing she's right. My brain is thick with fog, clouded by exhaustion and I ache everywhere.

"Here." She says when I don't say anything else and offers me a plastic container filled with what looks like chicken and rice. My stomach grumbles and I realize just how hungry I am. I don't remember how many hours it's been since I had a proper meal, not including the few bites of the sandwich Christina had given me last night.

I only hesitate momentarily before popping off the lid to the container and start eating the chicken. It's not very warm anymore, but it still tastes good. Once the food hits my stomach, I feel my eyelids getting heavy and stifle a yawn, but I manage to finish most of the food. I grip Tris's hand in mine again; harder than necessary to help myself focus on something and to stay awake. I hear the sound of plastic scraping against tile as my mother stands up and walks around the bed so she's beside me again.

"Get some rest." She says softly.

She reaches her right hand up and runs her hand gently through my hair like she used to when I was little and couldn't fall asleep at night. I want to push her hand away but I don't have the energy anymore. It doesn't take much to push me over the edge and she knows it. I glance at Tris's face again as I feel my eyelids droop and let myself fall forward, my upper body sprawled out on the lower half of the bed. I fold my right arm using it as a pillow and in minutes am aware of nothing else as I give in to the exhaustion and fall asleep.

_**Hey Everyone,**_

_**So, I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. I know it's a lot more description than dialogue compared to the first chapter. And don't worry, I'm going to have Tris wake up soon, I just wanted to make sure I made the time line match up from the first and second chapters. So, pretty, pretty, pretty please let me know what you guys think so far, I really appreciate feedback, good or bad. **_

_**Also, I'm thinking of changing the title of this story to **_**Choices Defined**_** instead of **_**Peace After the Storm**_**. Let me know if you guys prefer one over the other, I had been debating between the two titles since I published the story and I'm starting to like **_**Choices Defined**_** better than **_**Peace After the Storm**_** but I don't want to confuse anyone, so let me know. : )**_

_**As always reviews are greatly appreciated! They really do make my day and help me get a sense of what people think of my story so far.**_

_**- FantasyForever1989**_


End file.
